GECF Ministerial Meeting and associated events to be held virtually

The yearly Ministerial Meeting of the Gas Exporting Countries Forum (GECF) will take place on 12 November under the rotating Presidency of the Democratic People’s Republic of Algeria. The meeting, and its related events, will convene virtually owing to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 22^nd Ministerial Meeting will discuss the current issues related to the gas industry and its interconnected domains of geopolitics, economy, and sustainability. Esteemed Ministers from the 20-member grouping will also address the key agenda items of membership expansion, annual budget, the new GECF Award, and the 6^th GECF Gas Summit of Heads of State and Government, scheduled for 2021.

In addition, the flagship publications of the GECF, Annual Short-Term Gas Market Report and the Global Gas Outlook 2050, will be reviewed, while the Annual Statistical Bulletin will be unveiled.

On 11 November, a Ministerial Roundtable will be held as an opportunity to discuss natural gas in a post-pandemic world. The day-long conference will feature two separate themes of short- and long-term impacts of COVID-19 on gas markets. Stuart Elliot of S&P Global Platts and Dr Bassam Fattouh of the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies will serve as the moderators on the two sessions.

Both the 22^nd Ministerial Meeting and the Ministerial Roundtable will be partially broadcasted and open to members of public and media.

On 9-10 November, an Extraordinary Executive Board meeting will be held to finalise the agenda and big-ticket items of the 22^nd Ministerial Meeting.

More details on the 22^nd GECF Ministerial Meeting and its associated events is available on dedicated page gecf.org/22nd-Ministerial-Meeting

The Ministerial Meeting is the supreme decision-making body of the GECF, which is a gathering of the world’s leading gas exporting countries. The Forum was set up as international governmental organisation with the objective to increase the level of coordination and strengthen the collaboration among its Member Countries. The 20 Member Countries and Observer Members together represent 71% of the world’s proven gas reserves, 45% of its marketed production, 53% of pipeline, and 60% of LNG exports across the globe. Its permanent secretariat is headquartered in Doha, Qatar – the world’s largest LNG exporter.